Note: This advice is given by the CAP Executive about non-broadcast advertising. It does not constitute legal advice. It does not bind CAP, CAP advisory panels or the Advertising Standards Authority.
The ASA has received many complaints from members of the public in recent years about circulars and regional press ads that appeal for donations of unwanted clothes, blankets, shoes, bags and the like. Most complainants were concerned that the advertisements implied the companies behind them were registered charities, not commercial companies (Olonex, February 2003; SWD Premier Clothing Exp Ltd, October 2003; Translimit, November 2003; Helpline UK Ltd, 3 December 2003; Kraslava Services Seven Ltd, 21 July 2004, and Combined Trading Services, 23 August 2006).
In December 2002, the ASA issued a warning to consumers about this type of advertising (“ASA warns of ‘charity’ ads that don’t add up". The warning coincided with the launch of the Charity Commission's seasonal Safer Giving campaign. Information on that campaign can be downloaded from the link below:
Safer Giving
1. Marketers should ensure that they do not imply they are charitable organisations if they are not. Charities should be registered with the Charity Commission. The status of the marketer should be clear. In 2008, the ASA upheld a complaint about an advertiser that described itself as a "registered non-profit organisation" and quoted a Companies House registration number (Europe Family Links Ltd, 27 February 2008).
2. Marketing communications that state that "donations" will be distributed to those in need or that imply the donor is taking part in an “appeal” are likely to misleadingly imply that consumers are donating to a charity. Claims such as "Charity begins at home" are likely to compound the impression.
3. Marketers should make clear in the main body copy, and not in a footnote that could be easily overlooked, that the clothing will be sold for profit. The team generally advises that references to providing clothes that people in poorer countries can afford are likely to be acceptable. But the ASA has upheld a complaint about an ad that claimed "THIRD WORLD CLOTHING COLLECTION Can you spare any of your old unwanted clothes which will be sent to the Third World where the garments will be carefully sorted and worn again ... Support and Help LTD is a collecting company which provides people in the third World countries with clothes for their families they can afford ... GOD WILL REWARD YOU FOR YOUR GOOD HEARTS". Marketers should therefore ensure that the impression given by the ad is not one of charity and would be well advised to state their purpose explicitly (Support and Help Ltd, 1 August 2007).
4. Companies who advertise their services in directories should ensure that they are not listed under headings such as “Charitable and Voluntary Services”.
The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has worked closely with the Charity Commission, Local Authority Trading Standards Services and the ASA to crack down on the bogus charity collectors. Marketers should be warned that, in December 2004, the OFT sought and got assurances from one trader who misleadingly implied he was collecting clothes for charity (see OFT website as well as the OFT’s press release from December 2006).
Last modified : 02 August 2010